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CCSS Alignment

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In answering the prompt, the student correctly identifies the narrator’s tone, but does not connect that attitude to specific diction from the passage. The student hints at “an aspect of life” (not feeling any older on your birthday), but does not elaborate.

 

Standard referenced:

RL.9–10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).

 

 

 

Support Materials

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From the “Focus” section of the rubric, it is clear that the student reaches Level 2: “Addresses prompt appropriately, but with a weak or uneven focus.”

1. Comprehensive & Application

The student provides a summary of the basic plot, but does not demonstrate a grasp on the complexity of the story’s context (i.e. colonialism, the narrator’s conflicted perspective, etc.).

2. Understanding 

The student’s attempt at including “conclusions or implications” that could be drawn is simply repeating the previous content of the same sentence, rather than connecting the narrator’s tone to broader interpretations.

3. Language Challenges

Does the student fully understand the meaning of the word “diction” or is this misuse indicative of the student’s limited English proficiency?

4. CCSS Alignment

Even though showing an emerging understanding of the connection between diction and tone, the student is below proficiency in RL.9-10.4, as the student confuses tone of the narrator with the attitude of natives toward him.

 

Standard referenced:

RL.9–10.4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone (e.g., how the language evokes a sense of time and place; how it sets a formal or informal tone).